Mérida to Host First Peninsular Meeting on Maya Language

Mérida, Yucatán — Mérida will host the first Peninsular Meeting of Municipalities for the Maya Language on Aug. 8 at the Centro Cultural Olimpo, in observance of the International Day of Indigenous Peoples.

The gathering will bring together municipal officials from Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatán, along with language promoters, teachers, researchers, students and members of the public interested in supporting the Maya language.

The program was presented at the Municipal Institute for the Strengthening of Maya Culture. The event is organized by the Peninsular Movement U Péekbal Waye’, Yúuyum A.C. and the Basque-language association Garabide.

Mérida, led by Mayor Cecilia Patrón Laviada, will serve as host city. Organizers said the goal is to strengthen collaboration between local governments and civil society groups working to revitalize Maya in community, educational, cultural and institutional settings.

Karla Berrón Cámara, the city’s Director of Identity and Culture, praised the joint work among sister municipalities: Mérida, Tixcacalcupul and Cuncunul in Yucatán; Hopelchén in Campeche; and José María Morelos in Quintana Roo. She said the effort shows that linguistic resistance is a global cause.

The program includes keynote lectures, exchanges of experiences and dialogue panels on the role of local governments, communities and society in building a future where Maya has a stronger and more visible presence.

Organizers will also sign a letter of intent committing to working groups with concrete goals. “It’s about ensuring the Maya language is not only remembered, but spoken on the streets and in offices,” Berrón Cámara said. Municipalities will support one another in sharing successful practices, promoting public policies with cultural identity, and publishing books and materials to help make Maya official, everyday and alive in public administration.

Yazmín Novelo Montejo, president of Yúuyum A.C., said she expects municipal presidents from Yucatán, Campeche and Quintana Roo to attend, along with Aitor Aldasor, deputy counselor for Linguistic Policies of the Basque Country.

“We appreciate the coordinated efforts and the opportunity to build proposals that help guarantee the presence and use of Maya in public and government spaces, recognizing its value as living heritage and a fundamental part of the identity of the peoples of the peninsula,” Novelo Montejo said.

The event will run from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., closing with a music recital by the group Maayadzulo’ob to celebrate the region’s linguistic and cultural diversity.

Those interested in attending can register or request more information by calling 999 668 9203 or following U Péekbal Waye’ on Instagram and Facebook.

Also present at the presentation were Arkaitz Zarraga, representative of Garabide; Erika Huh Pat, culture director of Tixcacalcupul; and Alberto Venegas Escamilla, director of social, rural and human development and economic development of Hopelchén, Campeche.